Ningen no Yōso (人間の要素)
by JLScotti
Summary: As usual my bad luck leads me down the wrong alley on the wrong night. Next thing I know I'm a baby again, my parents are stupid rich and everyone keeps speaking in Japanese, and for THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD, CAN SOMEONE CHANGE MY DIAPER! Self-Insert fic. Slight AU.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Yes I re-uploaded this chapter. I did this because I honestly didn't like it so I did some editing.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

I've got to say, death can be extremely abrupt. I mean seriously, even as I drift lazily through this never-ending nothingness I've found my consciousness floating in, I still find myself jarred by the suddenness, although I guess that's to be expected after being shot point blank.

Back on the topic of drifting through nothingness, its going really irritate my disembodied consciousness if this what I can expect the rest of my death to look like.

I mean I didn't necessarily expect anything after death. Despite growing up in fairly Christian household I don't invest much stock into the whole heaven and hell trope. Growing up on fiction books and reading up on a variety of different cultures and mythologies has however made me curious as to the possibilities that lay beyond death.

The answer is a bunch of muted grays.

At least I think its grey, I don't think I have eyeballs anymore.

If you asked me how much time passed I honestly couldn't answer you for shit, I don't even know if time followed the same rules here, wherever this is. So I was content to simply drift idly, eventually I felt my consciousness 'tiring' and what followed was a sensation not dissimilar to falling asleep, I didn't resist.

When I 'awoke' next I was barely coherent, my world consisted of a red tinged darkness and pressure, lots of pressure. I found I did not like this pressure and did my very best to escape its hold on me. The further away I seemed to go the stronger the pressure became. Finally however I found release, and was suddenly met with bright light and muffled and confusing voices. I felt a sharp pain and cried out.

"...my baby..."

What was that?

"...so beautiful, he's...your eyes..."

Huh? I suddenly found myself in what felt like a warm embrace

I started to make out vague silhouettes, first of the person holding me. Their form vaguely female, a second form intruded itself into my frame of view soon after. This one seemed to be looming over the first silhouette and myself. I found myself rapidly losing consciousness yet again.

"...Fumio"

* * *

When I next awoke it was in a cradle, an extremely lavish one at that, and under the curious brown gaze of a child. He looked to be about six or seven at most, his black hair in a top knot. His features held a hint of asian heritage, but he was for the most part dark-skinned. He swiftly noticed I was awake.

"Hi!" he chirped, with a bubbly disposition only a child was capable of, "You don't know me but I'm your big brother, that means we're going to be best friends you know." He stated, like it was a universal absolute. I gave him a queer look, which made him giggle. My look wasn't because of his declaration, I vaguely remember I once said something similar when my younger sister was brought home. No what got my attention was the fact that I was pretty sure this young boy was speaking Japanese, yet English seemed to overlay it in my ears.

"Kazuo what are you giggling about?" said a voice I vaguely recognized as the female voice from earlier.

My eyes instantly began roaming the room trying to locate where my the woman was. It was odd but I found myself yearning for it. I didn't know why I was so attached to this woman, but I desperately wanted to be near her. I just couldn't help it, the woman radiated a gentle warmth that made me want to never leave her embrace.

"Fumio is making funny faces at me Mommy, does that mean he likes me?" No that means I think you're weird strange asian/black boy, then again that's pot and kettle, as that was my old ethnicity anyway. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. My mother giggled, I could now see her leaning over my brother's shoulder.

"Maybe he thinks you are a funny big brother" My mother supplied, Kazuo's chest seemed to swell with pride at this, I shot him another look and he grinned. My mother, as I soon realized that is who she was scooped me up and out of my cradle and gently began rocking and cooing at me.

Damn it woman! I just woke up I don't want to go back to sleep just yet! I needed to figure this crazy situation out! Why was I a baby? I took the moment to observe my (new) mother. She was beautiful, or perhaps I was biased, her skin was dark and smooth, her face heart-shaped. Her long ebony tresses were done were braided into dreadlocks, she stared down at me with mercury colored eyes lovingly.

Damn if it wasn't hard to stay irritated and focused under those sparkling pools.

My irritation obviously still showed however, but was misinterpreted.

"Is little Fumio hungry?" she inquired.

Damn it woman! No I'm no- wait I am actually really hungry, my stomach let out the tiniest of growls. My mother cooed about how adorable the sound was. She then moved to a chair in the corner and began shifting her kimono. My brother seemed to catch on and quickly vacated the nursery.

Now as a baby I didn't have the hormonal capabilities to get aroused, but there was still the soul of a twenty year old young man in this body and he could appreciate the sight what I estimated to be thirty-four Cs. Until I remembered that this woman, was for all intents and purposes still my mother.

"Oh so exuberant, you must have been really hungry." Said my mother.

They were still a nice pair however.

"Oh I heard our new addition is awake." said a deep cultured voice. I shifted my attention from the bosom I was feeding on the new person in the room.

He was tall. I would guess 188cm. He had long purple hair that fell between his shoulder blades, dressed in vaguely Asian inspired robes he cut quite the handsome figure, broad shoulders, and a barrel chest. His eyes were caramel brown, like the boy's, Kazuo. On his face was a confident smirk,I could tell it was a regular fixture. Was this man my father?

"Kazuhiro, please don't distract Mio, he needs to eat." my mother reprimanded. The man, Kazuhiro, shot her a raised brow.

"Distract him?" he leered playfully, "Gina, the boy looks like he loves those things more than I do!" He began to guffaw, laughing at his own joke.

So these were my new parents? The chuckling Kazuhiro and the elegant Gina? Interesting. I soon found my stomach full, my eyes became heavy again, and I drifted slowly asleep.

* * *

After another impromptu nap, I awoke to another a face I did not know.

She was dark skinned like the rest of my apparent family, the same Asian features as well, mostly around the eyes. Her wispy purple hair had obviously faded from its former glory. I'd imagine it would have been as rich a purple as my father's. Her face was filled with laugh lines, and her eyes shone with a wisdom only seen in the elderly. She was also decked out in some opulent robes that had bits of pale yellow, dark blues and some grey. She was also wearing lots of expensive jewelry.

I assumed this was my grandmother.

She noticed I had woken up but hadn't said a word, we just locked gazes, her teal eyes examining mine and vice versa.

"Aren't you a bright little one" she stated a smirk settling on her weathered face. Kazuhiro's, my father's, own smirk was a mirror of her own. This only further emphasized their resemblance.

"Woman don't creep the kid out." a gruff, yet somehow cultured, voice stated. My alleged grandmother rolled her eyes at the comment I assumed was made by either a granduncle or my grandfather.

"Can you blame my curiosity husband." she said, grandfather it was then, "My grandson is obviously going to be a genius, I have an eye for these things. Who was it that spotted Gina's natural affinity for economics? A bright girl like that would be a perfect wife for my son, not only has she brought us great revenue and two beautiful grandchildren, but our second grandson is already showing levels of attentiveness seen in children at least five years his senior." She announced smugly.

I was affronted. Just five years? Woman I'm 20…at least mentally that is.

But I learned a couple valuable pieces of information. First my family was obviously rich and maybe owned some sort of business. Also my grandmother was a matchmaker.

I will not be caught unawares by any romantic schemes in the future.

I became aware of a second presence over me, an old dark skinned man that bore a passing resemblance to my father, but shared more of a resemblance to Kazuo. Is that why he felt so familiar to me? Because I could swear I've seen him before. He reached down and picked me up.

"Hm, yes I can see it, he might make good _Daimyō _one day." He stated confidently.

That gave my thoughts pause. Was I somehow born into some alternate dimension feudal Japan? Because that's all kinds of awesome, I idly wondered if I'd be able to read Kanji. Seeing as I somehow was able to understand the language instinctively.

Wait, hold up. Daimyō! I was royalty?!

That was both amazing and troubling. Royalty meant heavy responsibility. Responsibility I don't think I want. Damn it all, I was having a panic attack and I was barely a day old!

While I had my mini breakdown my grandparents started to leave the nursery. My grandfather carrying me. My grandmother paused at the door, and let out an exasperated sigh.

"You always forget to put this back on whenever you put it down." she noted, I'm assuming she was referring to some form of head-dress, as I assumed my grandfather was a Daimyō. As my grandmother placed the head-dress back on my Grandfather's unwilling head my suspicions were confirmed.

Then I got a proper look at the head-dress and my eyes threatened to jump out of my skull.

Firstly, it looked ridiculous. Like a giant white fan with yellow tassels. But that wasn't what caught my attention. For decorated on the fan-like portion were three lightning bolts.

I now knew why this man was so familiar to me.

"Fufufu, little Mio must think it looks silly, he's staring at it so intently" my grandmother mused, giggling. My grandfather scoffed.

"Or maybe my grandson recognizes that one day he will have to bear this burden, and is in awe of its splendor." Granpa rebutted.

Oh I recognized it alright, and I knew exactly what it meant. This had to be a dream, because somehow, through some bullshit way, I've been born into the Elemental Nations. On top of that I was the grandson of one the most powerful men on the continent.

Damn you RNG!

I call hax!

* * *

Author's Notes:

Hello my new and hopefully enthusiastic readers. I'm fairly new to fanfic writing, although I've been on this site for years. I know this chapter is depressingly short, but it's more of me testing the waters so to speak. If I didn't post something I would have lost my nerve and chickened out.

Hit me up with some feedback. Criticize my writing, the whole shebang. I'm using fics as my outlet to practice my skills. Tell me if you wanna see more.

EDIT: For the reviewer who asked. RNG means random number generator. It is used in video games that are based of randomly getting items or characters based on luck.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: The italicized passages marked with "*" are taken from the Naruto wikia page of the User: Omnibender.**

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto he would have red hair.

By the time I was six months I started walking. I had wanted to do so earlier, but I didn't want to raise too much suspicion. Either way my family was still freaking out (in excitement) about the fact that I was walking so early, my father lauded me as a prodigy to all who would hear him, which was a lot of people actually. Why the rush to gain mobility you ask? Simple mobility meant increased independence. I was quite aware of my situation and planned to get the best out of it. I knew how crazy these lands were, and I had every intention of not just surviving, but thriving.

The fact that my family was filthy rich would help me greatly with that.

My family learned swiftly that I wasn't the kind of child to play with toys, instead I preferred to be read stories. Which wasn't too odd. What they did find odd however was that my choice in literature rarely included picture books. The reason for this being I was desperate to learn how to read kanji, my odd ability to listen to Japanese and hear it as English did not extend to the written aspect of the language.

At least not totally

Whenever I was reading with a member of my family I would get glimpses of the meanings of the kanji just before they would explain it to me. I would always get a tingling sensation starting from my head, all the way down my spine when this phenomena happened.

I had theories, well a theory, as to why this was happening.

But that was currently unimportant, it was a boon, and I wasn't going to complain.

Currently I sat on the floor, in front of a mirror in my parents' room. My mother was putting away a book about the history of Lightning Country back on the shelf, I was observing myself.

I was chubby, a healthy chubby, my mocha skin smooth. I had some tufts of dark purple hair, and I mean so dark it was close to black, on my scalp. I was in some the most opulent baby clothes one could put on a child, a mix of dark blues, grays and pale yellows, the standard livery of Lightning nobility. I was a cute kid, I only had one issue with my new face.

I had my mother, Gina's, eyes.

This greatly irked me, I mean the mercury pools were pretty enough, my grandmother crooned about how captivating they would

be when I was older. My father insisted to my mother I would be breaking hearts at a glance.

I just wanted my old brown eyes again.

I'm not talking about my new father Kazuhiro's caramel brown, no my original eyes were a few shades darker, in my old life at least. They say eyes are the window to the soul so why were mine not their original color? It's a stupid thing to complain about, I will admit to that, however I liked my old eyes, especially the faint blue-green rim that surrounded the brown of my old irises. A genetic trait I inherited from my original father.

I actually kind of missed my old life, as boring as it was. Just some kid from New York, from a barely middle class family from the Caribbean, attempting to get into college while making lay progress on one of my several novel ideas. It actually hit me pretty hard that I wouldn't be getting on a flight to visit my parents the coming summer, to go laze about the beach with my best friends on a random whim.

Speaking of them I wondered how they were doing, did they miss me? Did anyone dress up as the Grimm Reaper at my funeral? I would never know. With that thought came a sense of longing, and loneliness. I didn't really have any friends at all now, I hadn't even been on any play dates as of yet. Which made sense, my family wasn't stupid, we were nobility, and my parents taking me out of the palace was any assassin's wet dream.

"Ne, Mio why do you look so sad?" my thoughts were interrupted by my brother's face being nose to nose with mine. "Sorry if I kept you waiting we can go play now." Kazuo said, a silly grin on his face.

Ok so I wasn't totally without companionship. This was a bit of parallel to my old life. I was the elder sibling of my original sires' two children. This time I was the younger sibling, and to be honest I always wanted an older sibling.

I gave Kazuo a big gummy grin, hints of teeth to come just peeking out of the soft tissue.

"Be gentle with Fumio, he may be able to walk now but he's still learning, don't play to rough." Mother chided, emphasizing caution.

I pushed myself up on my own power and walk/hobbled over to my brother who took my hand in his.

Honestly Gina had nothing to worry about, Kazuo loved me and would never hurt me. At least not intentionally.

* * *

By the time I was nine months old I started talking. It was rather embarrassing because it wasn't the stereotypical "Mama" or "Papa" in fact I was reading a book about lore on the Sage when I just started mumbling the passages to myself. My father was so startled he dropped his tea cup, and just stared at me in mute disbelief. When I realized what I had done my cheeks darkened. I had originally intended to work slowly into speech, as to not arouse suspicion.

My mother, by the way was rather dismayed to learn her son's first words were not "Mama" but rather a mumbled "…it was believed that with the Holy Sword of Nunoboko the Sage carved out the different nations and their borders."

My brother just ecstatic that we could talk to each other now.

My Grandmother however was giving me cagey glances every once in a while. It didn't shock me, my Nana was a smart woman. What did surprise me was how much those looks stung.

Ever slowly, my old identity was being swallowed up by the existence know as Fumio.

* * *

When I turned two, I finally got my first taste of politics.

By that I meant a completely harmless play date with the granddaughter of the Earth Daimyō.

She was only 2 years older than me physically. She was an adorable little thing, her chestnut hair tried its utter best not to frizz out, and I could tell it was a losing battle. A sign of curly tresses to come in the future no doubt. Her mother's hair was absolutely luxurious, she would no doubt inherit those genetics. Her eyes were wine-colored, which she inherited from her father. Her face was round, her skin a light olive.

There wasn't much playing going on, we were only here so our parents could show off their progeny in a sort of 'Who has the cuter kid' competition. She half-heartedly played with some of the toys laid out for us. Occasionally her eyes roamed the room, taking in the artwork on the walls depicting artistic representations of Lightning, and scenes from famous battles. My family was hosting. Her eyes always inevitably turned to me however, inquisitive. I was occupying myself with a thick tome.

My brother was absent. He was nine now and likely wouldn't want to be sitting around with toddlers.

…

Untrue now that I think it over, my brother adored me and would have loved to spend time with me regardless of a younger guest or not. He most likely was with his tutors, I was pulled from my own tutoring for this 'date'. Our parents were discussing politics in another corner of the room, our grandfathers were having an actual meeting in a different section of the palace.

I saw her tentatively get up and make her way over to the couch I was currently occupying. I made note of Nana's sharp eyes were locked on us now.

"U-um, y-you don't mind if I sit h-here d-do you?" she inquired shyly, her voice was incredibly gentle, matching her gentle features. It was an odd countenance to have for the heir of land known for its…hardness.

I nodded, but nonetheless continued reading. She shuffled awkwardly, I shot her a sidelong glance but kept reading.

"…"

"What's your name" I asked, an unnecessary question, my parents made sure I knew every name of every major noble, "mine is Fumio", but she wouldn't start the talking on her own without prompt.

"N-naoko" she said softly, I found her stutter to be utterly adorable.

"Nice to meet you Naoko" I said. There I started the conversation, if she truly wanted to talk to me she would take up the initiative and continue the conversation. I returned my attention to the tome in my lap that was wider than I was tall.

"U-um, what are you reading?" she inquired.

"Beginner Fuinjutsu" I stated distractedly. She looked alarmed.

"J-jutsu? Why a-are you r-reading a-about jutsu?" Naoko seemed utterly baffled by the thought.

"Cuz they're cool" was my reply. What? I'm two. That was enough reasoning any kid my physical age needed to do anything at all.

"D-do you want to be a s-shinobi?"

"Nope" I replied, popping the 'p'. That way lie the road to a particular brand of madness I had no intentions of going down anywhere soon.

At this point however, our conversation caught the attention of the adults. Naoko's father, Noboru I believe his name was, was the first to speak. Clearing his throat he turned to his daughter.

"It is not unusual daughter," he began, brushing an elegant ginger bang away from his eye, "for a noble to take interest in the shinobi arts. Although…" he turned to my parents at this point.

"It is most unusual for one to start this young." There was something in that tone of his, "Does the boy even understand what he's reading?" Noboru finished. My mother's face tightened a smidgen, my father's mirth dimmed a tad, and Nana simply rolled her eyes.

I took it in stride, it was a legitimate question. I spoke up before my father could begin firing barbs.

"Fuinjutsu isn't just for shinobi," Noboru's attention shifted to my diminutive frame, "I study it because it's interesting and diverse. Seals and runic work have been around before man even had chakra. But now that we have chakra the art has evolved, also it doesn't really matter if I understand or not, that's why we study. To learn." My peace given I returned my attention back to the tome and idle chatter with Naoko. I kept half an ear on their conversation however.

Noboru turned to my father.

"Fuin? Really Kazuhiro? I thought the Ten Clan tradition was to send their sons to the Lightning Temple to be trained in self-defense?" Noboru then chuckled, "Taijutsu is more fitting for Lightning's brutish nature, how refreshing it is indeed to find a budding scholar." My father's irritated look was replaced with a condescending smirk.

"Our little Mio is destined to be more than a mere scholar, and the training at the Lightning Temple isn't a must. Merely a tradition." He stated. "You really shouldn't be surprised, our libraries hold the history of man long before chakra touched the land, my son will never be in want for knowledge." Noboru obviously caught the boastful nature of my father's tone, he could not refute his claims however.

Lightning Country is basically where life as we knew it began. The Six Path Sage and his brother were birthed here, if my memory serves me correctly.

"U-um," my attention shifted back onto Naoko, "Do you think I could learn jutsu to?" She inquired. I shrugged.

"You could probably ask your parents to get you a tutor in whatever jutsu you wanted to learn." I stated, and it was true, it was a common trend for young Lords and Ladies to train in some form of self-defense, mostly out of recreation. However sometimes, it was so that they wouldn't be caught defenseless when ambitious relatives decided they'd rather their families be in power than yours.

Speaking of relatives my brother chose that moment to stride into the room, his lesson obviously over with.

"Little Bro!"

* * *

"Prince Fumio, your calligraphy is truly beautiful!"

I gave a noncommittal grunt of appreciation to the servant attending me.

It wasn't like I didn't appreciate the praise, I was just used to it now. My accelerated growth continued and I dived in headfirst into the art of calligraphy. Many saw it as a hobby or past time. I saw it as more than that however.

Even before my untimely end I had always been obsessed with fuinjutsu. It always irked me how little of it was used in the manga. Fuinjutsu to me, had no limits. It was no surprise that this was the art I was dedicating most of my time and effort into.

What was surprised my prodigious streak in almost everything I studied. I will be the first to announce I was no academic genius in my past life.

I was five now, but I had easily caught up to my brother in terms of academic tutoring and would soon pass him. My brother took it in stride and continued to give me encouraging grins and pats on the back.

I was surprised by my skill in calligraphy especially, I had shittiest penmanship known to man in my old life. Nonetheless my growth rate had even me in a stupor, and continued to raise some suspicions I had. I currently had no way to prove these suspicions sadly.

A gigantic palace and I couldn't find one scrap of chakra paper. Tch, go figure.

My thoughts were interrupted by a voice I really wasn't in the mood for.

"You have the most boring of my dearest cousin." Came a drawl voice from my doorframe.

Ugh. Not this clown.

The clown I was referring to was my cousin Tatsuya. Tatsuya, like most men from Lightning, was dark skinned and covered in muscle and sinew, his silver hair was set in cornrows. He thrived during his training with the Lightning Monks, more so than many of our other relatives. He never let anyone forget it either.

"You should take up my offer for early training," he sneered at my thin frame with teal eyes, "maybe then we could put some meat on those bones."

I sighed, and began putting away my tools, I would get no peace now that he was here.

To be honest I tolerated Tatsuya because he was the least likely to stab my family in the back in a ploy for the throne. Mostly because Tatsuya wanted to be prize fighter. He had the annoying habit of trying to turn me into a 'real man' as he put it. My brother normally told him to bug off, Tatsuya mostly ignored him. There was nothing much my brother could do, he was twelve Tatsuya was sixteen.

That also meant he was at 'that' age.

Tatsuya leered at my servant girl.

"Well aren't you get us something to drink?" he asked, his voice a cultured drawl. The servant girl's eyes turn to me, I nodded.

"Could you also bring me some dango please?" I implored, it was always could to show the help respect. The servant girl bowed and left the room to retrieve our snacks. Tatsuya eyed her rear as she left.

I couldn't fault him, it was an attractive rear.

Tatsuya joined me seated on some pillows.

"Heard Kazuhiro took your bro up to the Temple," he began, "figured they'd take you to seeing as you're such a little prodigy, even if you are a runt." He stated, a cocky smirk resting on his mug.

I frowned at Tatsuya reminding me of my conundrum. If I could get my hands on some chakra paper I could confirm my suspicions.

Hm, I wonder.

"Cousin, you have shinobi friends, no?" an innocent inquiry, Tatsuya looked at me oddly none the less.

"Uh, yeah, I know a couple, why?" he asked.

"You know about nature manipulation?" Tatsuya nodded, "could you get me some chakra paper?" his confusion grew even more.

"Yeah I know a shinobi supply store in the City," he said while nodding "why do you want chakra paper? I thought you didn't want to be a shinobi?"

"I don't, it's for an experiment, and Mother doesn't want me going into the City without her or Father." They wouldn't even let me go with just the guards either, not until I could defend myself.

Which I couldn't do yet. Not until my calligraphy was perfect, then and only then, would I start making seal tags to carry around.

"Hm, I guess I can take the time out of my schedule then." He mused, the servant arrived with our snacks, placing a tray with tea and dango between us.

"Thank you. I would really appreciate it." He grunted and we dug into our mid-morning snack.

Later that evening I found myself in a secluded section of the palace gardens. A thin piece of unassuming paper in hand. I made sure I was alone in this section, then took a deep breath, the released it, I repeated the process several more times.

I was trying to center myself to call upon the trickle of life force I knew was there. Unseen by the naked eye, running alongside my veins. I felt a small flicker of warmth, I pushed and cajoled it to my hand, where the paper lay and watched as it crinkled, the air smelled of ozone and I'm pretty certain my hair was no longer tamed and orderly, no doubt spiking up.

I grinned widely. Perfect.

You're probably very lost by now.

I pulled a notebook out of my pocket and turned a couple pages, notes of seals and elemental combinations and advanced chakra theory passed by with each page, all written in English to confuse any would be thieves. Finally I arrived to my desired page, a list. It read as such.

'Yin/Yang + Fire = Health'

'Yin/Yang + Wind = Soul'

'Yin/Yang + Lightning = Mind'

'Yin/Yang + Earth = Flesh'

'Yin/Yang + Water = Blood'

I grinned and scrawled next to the third item. 'Confirmed'

I then began to cackle madly.

The following evening, the servants would begin to spread rumors of Prince Fumio's descent to madness, as he was allegedly seen laughing maniacally with untamed and disheveled hair.

* * *

Six months passed and I rarely left my room or the library.

I spent my time fervently compiling nature manipulation notes and experimenting with seal script. You see before my first death, like most young adults I spent unhealthy amounts of time on the internet. I even scrolled through the Naruto wiki a couple of times.

It was there I discovered the Elemental Recompositon Table. Someone had created chart showing every possibly Nature combination, both canonical and theoretical.

Five of the theoretical combinations caught my attention.

One you think you needed to understand about elemental chakra was that the elements could be taken in both a literal sense, and a symbolic sense. Finding out how to properly mix and mingle those in certain ways could lead to amazing results and unless you were born with a bloodline limit, most shinobi take years to master elemental combinations.

I wasn't a ninja, but I didn't need to be. I cheated with Fuinjutsu.

I think the closest thing in real life I could compare fuinjutsu to would be programming. Using simple or complex formulae to create a desired effect. The possibilities were limitless. That being said I remembered the other combinations the table had mapped out, and would be experimenting with them later. But I had plans for the five I mentioned earlier.

A part of me still thought this was a dream, which I would wake up from at any given time, however I've done my best to ignore those thoughts. Here I was, in the world of shinobi and chakra, there were so many opportunities to make and take advantage of, I would not waste them.

Sadly I was born on the tail end of the Third Shinobi World War and thus any chance of me doing, something to forestall Obito Uchiha's descent into madness was long gone.

I grimaced.

A lot of plans I have would cause me to gain a lot of notoriety. I already had lots of that for simply being born. My biggest fear was getting on that man's radar.

This is why the moment I learnt to read, I spent gratuitous amounts of time studying Fuinjutsu.

My brother wanted to be Daimyō. Honestly he would be perfect for the job. We were booth being groomed for the position and many favored me for the position. I didn't want it, I didn't have the charisma for it, and even in my new life I was still socially awkward. I just had etiquette training to fall back on so people wouldn't realize I had no idea how to effectively interact with other humans. Becoming a shut in and practically living in the Palace Library wasn't helping my case.

But it would be worth it in the end. Because the thing that mattered most in these lands was power. Whether it be financial or the strength of your Jutsu, power meant everything. In a perfect world, my brother would be Daimyō, succeeding my father's reign when it came. I would be his advisor, a statesman. I would use both my political power, and brute force if necessary to ensure Lightning Country stayed prosperous.

My thoughts were interrupted by a servant delivering my lunch.

"My Prince," he began setting down the tray, he hesitated, then continued "your mother is concerned for your health and says she would prefer if you were to dine with the rest of your family for dinner tonight." I grunted. She placed an envelope on my desk.

"Your brother has also sent a letter." She then made her leave.

My brother was still studying at the Lightning Temple and would be for the rest of the year, but he still took the time out of his day to send me letters. That put a small smile on my face.

It was pretty cool having an older brother.

* * *

The entire capital was here. Every single man, woman, and child. Along with a lot of Kumo Shinobi, including the Yondaime, A, himself. All here for one reason.

My Grandfather was stepping down. In his place my father would become Daimyō. It was a momentous occasion.

It was also very boring.

Kazuo and I struggled to look as noble as our dictated we were, while also trying to hide our growing boredom. I felt we were doing rather well.

I blanked out during most of the officious talk. I knew it all already. I made myself busy eyeing the crowd. Then turned my attention to the shinobi around us, our guards for the occasion.

Except one of them wasn't a guard. To be fair to the rest of the shinobi he was doing a magnificent job acting like one. His inner thoughts however were an open book to me.

He was seven feet from my father, practically a sure-kill distance for any shinobi. Killed and replaced the original guard while they were still on route to the Capital. His Henge technique was flawless. I could appreciate that kind of skill from an assassin.

He wouldn't have my father's life today however.

I watched him tense, muscle like serpents coiled ready to spring, the Raikage's eyes shifted ever so slightly. I could hear his intent as if he was whispering it into my own ear. I didn't need to utter a word, there was no need to cause a scene.

'_Don't_' a silent unheard command.

He relaxed, looking for all the world like he just had a minute muscle spasm. The Raikage's eyes turned back to my Father, who was finishing his speech.

I idly rubbed at the back of my neck, where a seal tag I placed was hidden by thee collar of my ceremonial robes. The sealing script compressed into a single kanji.

(心)Mind.

* * *

_A Mind (__心__, Kokoro) nature, yielding Mind Release (__心遁__, Shinton) ninjutsu. The mind is the abstract notion of cognitive processes, such as rational thought, memory, perception and intellect. Rational thought is often considered the reason why Homo sapiens succeeded, proliferating and inhabiting most areas of the planet, developing technology and culture, changing the environment to meet their liking. Physically speaking, all those mental processes are electrical impulses in the nervous system, focused mainly on the central nervous system, in particular the brain. *_

As I sat between my mother's legs, while she braided my hair into dreadlocks, I contemplated the success of my new seal. Its main function was the production and amplification of 'Mind Natured' chakra. The seal measured out the appropriate ratio of Yin/Yang to Lightning Natured Chakra, then converted it into the new Nature. I was apparently unconsciously producing Mind Natured Chakra due to my naturally potent lightning affinity.

Yeah, it was that kind of convenient bullshit that still had me thinking this was all one long dream.

Everyone's chakra carried a Yin and Yang nature you just had to know how to manipulate it. The seal did most of the heavy lifting in terms of measuring out the nature's anyway. Nonetheless it was just a prototype. I planned to improve it, then permanently brand it on my flesh at a later date.

The Mind Seal would be easiest for me to create out of the set I had planned. Mostly because it involved a nature I already had. I was too young to develop a second nature already, and that was assuming I developed another one that is. For the rest of my set I would need to design the seals to forcibly alter the chakra to the elemental nature I desired.

Luckily the seal did not put much of a strain on my admittedly pathetic reserves. This was probably due to the potency of my elemental affinity, and because I didn't need use for much. Just to plant a minute compulsion. The would-be assassin would make his way out of Lightning Country and would be convinced he lost his nerve.

I was content with the success nonetheless, I mean, my father would never know he almost lost his life a week ago. I considered this a major milestone, I would continue improving the Mind Seal, and experiment with artificial nature transformations, to gain more experience in that particular branch of Fuinjutsu. Oooh, maybe I could start off mixing the a singular element with either Yin or Yang separately.

I felt rather bad about abusing stolen Uzumaki knowledge for my own purposes. I knew our Library only carried them because our shinobi picked them off the blood-stained ruins of what used to be Uzushio. However I also felt to not take advantage of the ill-gotten knowledge would be wasteful.

Truly their designs were just amazing.

My mother tapped me on the nose, garnering my attention.

"What are you thinking about so hard in that big brain of yours?" she asked, "Steam's practically flying out of your ears"

Hm, maybe I could recreate Steam Natured chakra.

"Just some Fuinjutsu projects Mother, nothing to serious." I replied, my mother 'Hmph'd' and continued working on my hair.

"You and those seals, I hear most grown shinobi blow themselves up practicing Fuinjutsu," I could hear the worry in her voice, "I would really prefer if you took up a safer hobby you know." I shifted my head minutely to shoot her a flat stare.

"Like what, Accounting?" my mother looked very indignant, she did manage most of our financial affairs after all.

"And what's wrong with Accounting young man?" she asked, her tone dangerous. I wasn't afraid however.

"What's right?" I replied, a teasing grin on my face. She shot a dry look.

"You little brat!" I was promptly assaulted by fingers in all my weak spots.

Get your mind out the gutter, she was tickling me.

"Mother please! *gasp* *giggle* Stop!" she was without mercy however. My hair was forgotten and soon we were tumbling on the floor.

* * *

My now fourteen year old brother stared up at me amused. Why?

I was walking on the roof, barefoot.

I decided I wanted to increase my chakra capacity, and the only way I could do that was to:

Continually test out my seals.

Chakra Control routines.

My brother however only thought this was further proof that I apparently wanted to be a shinobi.

"You're doing a horrible job of convincing me otherwise little brother." He would say.

The prick, I loved him fiercely though.

It was made more comical due to the fact that I was reading from an old tome while doing it. One on seals, this one did not come from the Uzumaki however and was of local origins.

"_Permanently branding yourself with Fuin is not a practice done recklessly, the mark goes far beyond the ink, far beyond your flesh and bones. It etches itself into your very chakra"_

This is why I was waiting till I was much older to do just that, currently I was seven. I would of course keep creating and perfecting the seals for my set, which I dubbed the 'Ningen no Yōso' or the Elements of Human.

I still toyed around with my different designs, perfecting them. My Mind Seal now had a range of influence within a radius of six meters of myself.

It was quite the amusing sight making one of my more annoying cousins slap themselves from differing ends of the Dining Hall. Nana shot me an unimpressed glance as if she somehow knew it was my doing.

She had crazy Granny mischief senses, I swear.

It was also fun throwing a makeshift flash-bang into the guest room Tatsuya was staying in at the time. He has yet to forgive me for interrupting his attempt at seducing one of the servant girls. I found myself not caring that much.

The flash-bang was really just a seal tag with a short fuse that released a burst of Sound and Light natured chakra.

Yin + Wind = Sound

Yang + Lightning + Light

Simple Fuinjutsu, once you learned how program the seals to create the appropriate Natures.

There was a knock on my door, then a feminine voice called out.

"Can I come in?" at the sound of the voice my brother began fussing over his appearance, I announced that we were decent. In stepped a sixteen year old, Yugito Nii. I didn't really know much about her from the manga, she died before her character got any decent exposure. However she had become a regular face around the palace as Kazuo's preferred bodyguard, she was technically my bodyguard to.

Kazuo had a massive crush on her.

She was a pretty thing. Long blonde tresses done in a pony-tail, her black eyes were enchanting, whether on purpose or just naturally I didn't know. She wore a short-sleeved black and purple blouse and black pants, both of which had a design similar to clouds on them, purple fingerless gloves and a chain of blue beads wound around her left hand. Upon her forehead rested and standard Kumo headband.

She sauntered in, hand on hip, looking up at me she smiled beatifically.

"You're getting very good at wall walking little Fu" that was another thing, in the seven to eight months Yugito had been in the palace she had become very comfortable around us, enough to share out nicknames to the son of her sovereign ruler. At first she was content to simply do her job and nothing else, sadly her professional demeanor could not last against my boyish charm, and she eventually began opening up.

I could understand her initial behavior. Being a Bijuu Host must be difficult. She didn't have the same notoriety as the infamous Killer B, and thus was kept mostly at arm's length by the villagers and her colleagues.

They could scorn her all they wanted, more Yugito for me.

"Thanks" was my reply, I continued reading.

She turned to my brother, who straightened his posture as her attention rested upon. His chest was pushed out just a smidge, the poor fool had it bad. I honestly thought they would make a cute couple, if not a controversial one, and it wouldn't be the first time a Prince married a Kunoichi.

"Kazuo, care for a spar?" Yugito asked, my brother nodded exuberantly

"Sure!" I didn't need my Mind Seal to know he was just excited at the chance to get up close and personal with the hot blonde.

"Fumio, get off the roof, you're coming with, you could learn a thing or two about Taijutsu" she offered, I withheld a grimace. Sit down and watch nothing but teenage sexual tension? No thank you.

"I'll take a rain check" she frowned up at me.

"Growing boys need fresh air, get down now." This time it was an order.

If I was a real brat I would remind of who exactly was royalty here. But I wasn't a brat and actually liked her presence. So I would compromise.

"Can I bring the book?" I pleaded, she rolled her eyes but nodded anyhow.

* * *

_A Health (__健康__, Kenkō) nature, yielding Health Release (__健遁__, Kenton) ninjutsu. Health refers to an overall condition. A person is considered healthy when there are no illnesses, physical or psychological, or metabolic dysfunction. One's metabolism is the complete set of reactions responsible for maintaining homoeostasis in an organism, and one of the most critical components in metabolism is temperature. Out of a certain temperature range, several metabolic pathways fail to function properly, which can lead to many illnesses, and also death. Animals which can regulate their own temperature, such as humans, are called homoeothermic or endothermic. While they can maintain a high metabolic activity for longer, they suffer more with greater temperature changes.*_

It rained.

Luckily, I saved the book.

Sadly I was rapidly developing a cold. Which wasn't that bad, as it gave me an excuse to test out a new prototype for my set. I went into my desk and pulled out a seal tag, slapping it onto my arm, I immediately felt the results as my sinuses cleared. Reaching for my notebook, I grabbed my pen along the way, and flipped through the pages.

'Yin/Yang + Fire = Health - Confirmed'

"That's really impressive Little Fu" Yugito announced, she was lounging on some pillows on my floor, my brother likewise was found on the very same pillows. I made my way over and placed myself on her lap, she automatically began running her hands through my locks, as was our usual ritual. My brother shot me a resentful look.

"Thank you" I said, accepting her praise. We were just relaxing now dinner wasn't for a while so we had nothing to do. Yugito pulled me in closer. Kazuo's left eye twitched.

"What are you going to do with all those brains huh? What about all those seals? You have real talent, and as a Prince you're chances of succeeding in your endeavors are high." Yugito asked a valid question, one which I still had no definitive answer to.

Meh, I might try my hand at World Domination or World Peace, I'm pretty undecided.

"I want to one day open a College of Fuinjutsu in the Capital." Was my actual reply, my brother raised an elegant black brow.

"This is the first time I'm hearing about this." He stated. Well Brother Dearest, that's because I just made it up. I liked the idea now however. Something like the College of Winterhold from Skyrim. It would also be a very good cover for any less than legal activities in the future.

I merely shrugged at my brother.

Yugito gave a thoughtful "Hm" her hands gently running through my hair. I never had long hair in my old life, but I found myself rather enjoying it now. It was a bitch to manage sometimes however, and heavy.

"Do they have those? Fuinjutsu colleges I mean." Yugito asked. I shook my head.

"No, not anymore at least, the art is basically lost, and is rarely used outside specific situations, such as barrier teams, storage scrolls and explosive notes." The "and making Bijuu hosts" went unsaid.

"Hey, you could build it right here in the Capital." My brother proposed, not a half bad idea actually. I could probably open it to all who wanted to study the art. I could see it now, future acolytes from across the continent, all making the trip to learn under my tutelage, of course I would keep certain techniques to myself, that was a given.

Like the Ningen no Yōso. That one stayed with me.

"Mhm" was my eloquent response, Yugito's fingers in my hair was really distracting, I couldn't be bothered to say much else.

* * *

My father and I sat in his office, a shogi board between us. This was a common ritual for us, although we haven't been able to take part in it much due to his increase in responsibilities as Lightning Daimyō, he rarely delegated and was very hands on with his work.

"You're brother tells me you wish to one day found a Fuinjutsu college." my father asked, observing the board, so far the game was in my favor.

"Just a possibility." I replied, my natural 'Mind' affinity made these games easier the more I grew, there were only so many moves one could make in a fixed setting. I did actually plan to go through with the college, it was just a matter of when. Being royalty, I could commission it to be built whenever I so pleased, cost was not an issue.

"So you have no interest in politics?" his tone held no reprimand, my parents never pressured me into taking up a role in the court. As the second born I had was allowed a freedom my brother wouldn't really have.

"I never said that," I stated, I did plan to go in to politics, I just never expressed my interest blatantly, "nothing is stopping me from running the college and being a member of Lightning Court." My father gave a grunt of acknowledgement, eyes focused on the board, I was three turns away from capturing his King and he was nervous.

I took a moment to observe the man I could now comfortably call my Dad. He changed little from the jovial man I met as an infant, the stress of his position made him a little less jovial but it was to be expected. He was very personal when it came to managing the affairs of Lightning Country, something which apparently earned him the respect of the Yondaime Raikage.

Being in his mid-thirties, he still looked reasonably healthy and vital. His inky black hair was still as glossy as ever, not a hint of gray to be seen. There were however signs of stress on his face, mostly around his eyes due to smaller rest hours. Chakra itself provided a passive rejuvenation, the stronger the chakra, the slower you aged.

My father's chakra was the only thing keeping the full effects of his hectic schedule from running rampant through his body. I had originally meant to keep my most prized Fuin for myself, but as of late I toyed with the idea of providing my family members with Health Fuin. There was no real harm in it, and I was certain they wouldn't really make much mention of it to anyone outside of the family's inner circle.

The Health Fuin is probably the only one out of my entire set that had no offensive capabilities, or at least not any I could think of currently. It was more of a passive buff, if I had to compare it to anything.

Hm, I guess there was no harm in some collective Immune System boosts.

"Father, what's your opinion on tattoos?" I asked, my father raised an elegant eyebrow.

* * *

I stared at the ball of wispy green chakra floating a few inches from my face.

_A Soul (__魂魄__, Konpaku) nature, yielding Soul Release (__魂遁__, Konton) ninjutsu. The soul is a concept present in many religions, with a many different interpretations. Generally, the soul is an ethereal essence of a person, that which gives someone a sense of self, personality and custom. The kanji for wind __風__can be used for concepts like manners, customs, and style, things which in some interpretations are rooted in one's soul._

"What are you staring at?"

The question came from Naoko, who was visiting for my eighth birthday, I didn't have much in the way of friends so big parties weren't really my thing. My family used to make a big deal about when I was younger but soon learned I really didn't are form much fanfare. Dinner was still quite the event, and that cake was glorious, but it was rather tame compared to the normal parties thrown in the Capital.

I retreated to my room with Naoko a few steps behind me, her family were staying the night, so as was custom by now, Naoko would be sleeping in my room.

"You can't see it?" I hedged, was I capable of looking at 'Soul Chakra' because it was formed from my chakra pools? Or was it something else. Naoko shook her head.

This wasn't unexpected, Soul Natured chakra was made of transmuted Wind after all, and Wind is invisible to the human eye.

But not my eyes apparently. It was possible that my "Mind Chakra" allowed me to now see things in the electromagnetic spectrum, which I thought, was pretty badass. Mind natured chakra was the only nature out of my entire set that I could channel without a seal. When I did use a seal, it augmented my already impressive mental functions.

I willed the ball (or was it a wisp?) of chakra to move behind Naoko's left ear.

"_Hi Naoko"_

Naoko practically jumped out of her skin

"EEEK! There's something behind me Fumio!" she cried, dashing behind me, I mostly ignored her antics, jotting down notes. One of the main functions for my 'Soul Constructs', would be to send information over long distances, I needed a way to track my desired target of course, but I would cross that bridge later, the seal was still in testing phases.

Naoko was still mostly freaking out.

'Yin/Yang + Wind = Soul - Confirmed'

* * *

October 10th.

For all my intellectual prowess I couldn't for the life of me remember why this date was so important.

I mean seriously, it bothered me for the entire day.

"What's got you so cranky Mio?" Kazuo inquired, we were having breakfast, Yugito standing guard behind our seats in the Dining Hall.

"I don't know", Kazuo raised a brow.

"Did one of your seals go wonky?" I shot him a venom filled glance, I took great pride in my skill at creating Fuin.

"My seals do not get 'wonky' as you so eloquently put it. This has nothing to do with my projects." Kazuo merely shrugged, being of no use.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out with that big brain of yours Fu, whatever it is." Yugito stated, offering me a small smile.

I grunted.

**Lunch**

"Still no luck with your, whatever it was." Kazuo teased.

If my earlier glare was venomous, the one I just shot my elder brother with was downright acidic.

Yugito flicked his ear.

But he was right. The nagging feeling at the back of my awareness distracted me for most of the morning, I got precious little research done. I was in quite the foul mood. Yugito glanced worriedly at me.

"Are you not feeling well, maybe you're sick?" she began fussing over my frame, checking for fevers. I waved her hands, as well as her concerns away.

"No I'm fine," I said, raising my arm to display a 'Health' seal tag on my arm, "there's no way I could be sick". My brother grunted in agreement.

"These Health Seals are damn good work," he began, lowering his collar to show off the red kanji tattooed onto his left pectoral, "haven't sneezed a day since."

Yugito again flicked his ear, something about 'indecency'.

**Later that night**

I stared at my roof.

I was going mad.

I turned my eyes to my Calendar, as if it held all the answers to my woes.

Atop my earlier issue, the night just felt eerie, as if something inherently wrong was in the air. This feeling compounded with the nagging feeling I've had all day, was keeping me up. Perhaps my brother was right? Did my 'Mind' seal somehow backfire? No that wasn't it, I had safety measures programmed in for such instances.

I released a sigh

"Whatever"

人間の要素

The next morning my father's office door was assaulted by rapid fire knocks.

"Come in?" said my father, we both stared at the messenger in the doorframe, curious about his odd behavior, and the wanton sweat rolling off his frame.

I wrinkled my nose at the smell.

"My apologies for the disturbance my Lords, we've received shocking news and I felt it was best that I get it to you as soon as possible." He stated, taking a knee, my father allowed him to catch his breath a bit more. Which he did, after a particularly large intake of air he announced.

"The Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze, is dead"

Ah, that's what was bugging me.

* * *

AN: Sorry for the delay guys, IRL issues and all that. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, as usual feedback is appreciated.

As promised this chapter was marginally longer.

Omnibender's Chart: wiki/User:Omnibender/Elemental_recomposition_table


	3. Bad News

Sorry about this readers, but I've decided to put this story on hold, possibly forever. I had good ideas for it but I feel like I went about it the wrong way and I don't like the story as it is. Some good news is I have a new story idea in the works, one that I hope will be much better than the current one. It will bear similarities to this one but will also be very different. I don't really think it'll be a Self-Insert, but it and any future stories will most likely written in 1st person. This is the POV I feel most comfortable using.

Thank you for the reviews and faves.


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